'It was all made up': Greg Fertuck says confession to undercover police was a lie
A man who told undercover police officers that he killed his wife says the confession was a lie.
In an RCMP interview room, during a four-hour warned statement, Greg Fertuck watched a recording of himself from a few days prior.
In the video, secretly recorded June 21, 2019, Fertuck told an undercover officer he shot his wife, Sheree Fertuck.
“It was all made up,” Fertuck said, after watching a portion of the video.
Fertuck believed the undercover officer to whom he confessed was the boss of a criminal organization for which he worked.
But it was all fake.
The undercover tactic is called a Mr. Big sting.
Fertuck was offered work for a criminal group and was told to be honest about any issues that could affect the organization.
After months of building trust and loyalty, Fertuck told the boss he shot Sheree twice — once in the shoulder, once in the head.
“I just said it to impress them. I didn’t even know I was being taped,” Fertuck said in the police interview room.
“I didn’t want to get fired, so I made up this story.”
Fertuck was getting paid for his work for the fake organization.
He told the undercover officers, whom he believed were his coworkers, that he wrapped Sheree’s body in a tarp and dumped the remains in a rural area near Kenaston, Sask.
“I guess it was a pretty stupid thing to make up a story like that … I know it doesn’t look good,” Fertuck said, during the warned statement.
Fertuck showed officers to the alleged location of where he disposed of Sheree’s body, but Fertuck was never able to find it.
RCMP Sgt. Charles Lerat flat out asked Fertuck, “Did you kill Sheree?”
“No, I still loved her,” Fertuck responded.
Fertuck told undercover officers he used a rifle to shoot Sheree and gave the men the gun clip. The men told Fertuck they were helping him “clean up” his mess.
When Lerat showed him the clip, Fertuck said the members must have stolen it from him.
“I can’t believe they actually took that from my place. I trusted those guys,” Fertuck told Lerat.
In the undercover police video, Fertuck said the shooting happened after Sheree threatened to take all his money.
“That’s when I sort of lost it,” Fertuck told the crime boss, in a room at the James Hotel.
During the warned statement, Fertuck was unaware the men were undercover officers.
Fertuck said he believed police were following him, and had wired the hotel room where he confessed, but didn’t know the boss was an undercover officer.
On the stand, Lerat said he decided not to tell Fertuck the boss was an RCMP officer “because in my opinion it would lead to more lies.”
Lerat described Fertuck as “a logical offender” with the ability to quickly “think of a response that was believable.”
The defence argues the Mr. Big sting can make “anyone confess to anything.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
OPINION What King Charles' schedule being too 'full' to accommodate son suggests about relationship with Prince Harry
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
Ontario man devastated to learn $150,000 line of credit isn't insured after wife dies
An Ontario man found out that a line of credit he thought was insured actually isn't after his wife of 50 years died.
Boy Scouts of America is rebranding. Here's why they've changed their name
After more than a century, Boy Scouts of America is rebranding as Scouting America, another major shakeup for an organization that once proudly resisted change.
Trial begins for Winnipeg serial killer who claims he was mentally ill
The trial of a man who admits he killed four women in Winnipeg is set to begin Wednesday, and a law professor says lawyers for Jeremy Skibicki have multiple hurdles to clear for a defence of mental illness.
These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
New Canadian study could be a lifesaver for thousands suffering from CTE
A first-of-its-kind Canadian research study is working towards a major medical breakthrough for a brain disorder, believed to be caused by repeated head injuries, that can only be detected after death.
Rape, terror and death at sea: How a boat carrying Rohingya children, women and men capsized
In March, Indonesian officials and local fishermen rescued 75 people from the overturned hull of a boat off the coast of Indonesia. Until now, little was known about why the boat capsized.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.